INTRODUCTION

RANGES is an instrumental post-rock band from Bozeman, Montana. The four-piece brings a captivatingly succinct approach to a musical genre focused on the exploration of time and expanse while staying true to the founding elements of the genre. Driven by deep concept and storyline, every note and climax is molded to a narrative that pushes the band and the listener to explore deeper compartments of their being both sonically and spiritually. Founded in 2013, Ranges has been writing and releasing music relentlessly to further grow as musicians and as humans.

ABOUT RANGES

To some, the word “ranges” itself possesses a workmanlike functionality, a general descriptiveness that skews away from terms and phrases that pop with sexiness. However, with catchiness comes pretense, and with pretense comes impermanence. Take a moment to consider the nuances inherent beneath the surface of the word “ranges:” awe-inspiring expanse, evocative landscapes, a hard-fought beauty that can only be expressed over time. Deceptively simple, RANGES proves the perfect moniker for this tirelessly-working post-rock band from Bozeman, Montana. Not only does their name provide listeners with a sense of place, quite literally the appropriate descriptive terminology for the region they call home, but also a glimpse into the ethics, aesthetics and sonic mission statement the band seeks to set forth. Working within a genre that eschews lyrical content for a richer and more textured approach to instrumental songwriting, RANGES traffics in the evocative, and their mission involves opening listeners’ minds to explore whatever narrative happens to most move them. Those familiar with the world of post-rock are well aware of the feeling that comes with staring into the eyes of nature while enveloped in sound and having those eyes stare back with a glisten heretofore unrealized. The beauty of the surrounding world is inevitably a driving force behind post-rock, and in that pursuit RANGES both crystallizes and pays homage to a crucial element of the art form’s basic fabric.

While RANGES’ music allows for all sort of imaginative journeying, they are not without clear conceptual foundation. Their 2015 standalone single “Night and Day” is a 24-minute musical study of the cycle of a day, with each minute representing an hour, moving from the quiet stir of early morning to the apex of late afternoon, from the crescendos of an evening lit by a million stars to the whispered reflectiveness of the small hours beyond midnight. Their 2016 LP The Gods of the Copybook Headings gazes upon the pages of classic literature, using the stanzas of Rudyard Kipling’s poem to relay concepts that are just as relevant today as they were nearly a century ago. By utilizing the written word as a template for their wordless pieces, RANGES deftly balances thematic intent with a respect for their listeners’ potential interpretations.

2017 sees the release of RANGES’ third full-length, aptly titled The Ascensionist. While remaining informed by the band’s previous works, it is a record that opens up their sound considerably. While the drive to stay true to traditional rock stylings remains intact, there is an undeniable shift of focus toward sweeping crescendos and more expansive soundscapes. This indeed stands apart as the band’s most epic work, a magnum opus that clearly marks a nexus point representing the culmination of one era of RANGES leading into the next. Avid music listeners will understand that this is one of those albums that is lifted in part by its intangibles, by the unshakable sense that this is a record that reflects a time when everyone found themselves on just the right page together at the right time. It signals a maturation from previous material, where their music ceased to be their reflection of what post-rock should be and became what they do, triumphantly so. The Ascensionist is where the concept becomes the reality, and where RANGES propels upward toward the top of the mountain.

HIGHLIGHTS

"Seven Sisters" featured as the soundtrack for Polaris Snowmobiles' promotional video Born For More (2018)

"The Greater Lights" from The Ascensionist is featured on the Spotify curated playlist Deep Focus (2017)

The Ascensionist selected as the 36th best post-rock album of 2017 by Post-Rock Reddit, the 40th best release of 2017 by the Arctic Drones Listeners Choice Poll, and made the New Music Explorer Best Post-Rock Albums of 2017 and the Arctic Drones 50 Favourite Albums of 2017.

"Kingdom" from And the People Cried out for a King featured as the soundtrack for Polaris RZR short (2017)

The Gods of The Copybook Headings album selected as the 10th best release of 2016 by Post-Rock Essentials, the 9th best release of 2016 by Post-Rock Discovery, and made the Arctic Drones 50 Favourite Albums of 2016

Various releases licensed as the soundtrack to Polaris' Online Ad Campaign (2016)

"Silence in the Face of Evil Is Itself Evil" from Bonhoeffer featured as the soundtrack for Adam Brummond's short film "Tronkyin" (2015)

Hosted the Solar Mansions album release and listening/viewing party at the Museum of The Rockies' Taylor Planetarium (2014)

PRESS

"[The Ascensionist] is terrific. I went on a journey. I love when a post-rock album isn't generic and when you close your eyes you can feel a story happening and every time you listen the story is slightly different."

"Through it all, the quartet demonstrates great fluidity, the result of playing so many shows. The band has always been solid, but The Ascensionist is their most energetic and endearing to date. It’s as if they’ve already reached the summit as pilgrims and returned as guides."

"The Ascensionist is right to the point. Well written songs, each with a strong focus on memorable melodies that burns right into the listener’s mind. It’s hard to pick favourite songs off The Ascensionist, the whole album is just put so well together and the flow of the album makes it a sin not to listen to it as a whole."

" ["And the People Cried out for a King"] is akin to This Will Destroy You’s “Moving on the Edges of Things” in terms of heralding a new sound. This next album is bound to be Ranges’ “Tunnel Blanket” and I look forward to this new album more earnestly than I ever have before."

"“The Gods Of The Copybook Headings” is still about lush soundscapes and calming melodies, and it inspires inward thought more than physical release, even in its most aggressive moments. It is music that feels designed for quiet moments alone – whether it be standing atop a peak looking down at the world after a long hike, or sitting on the back porch at twilight, Ranges excels at crafting soundtracks for contemplation."